Demonstration of Design Verification Model of Rubidium Frequency Standard

Abstract

In this paper we report the development of the design verification model (DVM) of Rb atomic frequency standard. The Rb atomic frequency standard or clock has two distinct parts. One is the Physics Package where the hyperfine transitions produce the clock signal in the integrated filter cell configuration and the other is the electronic circuits which generate the resonant microwave hyperfine frequency, phase modulator and phase sensitive detector. In this paper the details of the Rb Physics package and the electronic circuits are given. The effect of putting the photo detector inside the microwave cavity is studied and reported with its effect on the resonance signal profile. The Rb clock frequency stability measurements have also been discussed.